NTSB Preliminary Report Notes GPS Jamming in Fatal King Air Crash | Aviation International News

NTSB Preliminary Report Notes GPS Jamming in King Air Crash

Air ambulance struck terrain on visual approach

The NTSB’s preliminary flight track reconstruction shows the King Air’s route from Roswell to Ruidoso, the reported GPS outage, ATC requests to halt military GPS jamming, and the aircraft’s final descent before the fatal crash.

By Hanneke Weitering • Science & Technology Editor

June 18, 2026

The NTSB has released a preliminary report on the May 14 crash of a Beechcraft King Air C90, registered as N249CP, that killed all four occupants during an air ambulance flight in New Mexico. Operated by Generation Jets under Part 135, the airplane departed Roswell Air Center (KROW), bound for Sierra Blanca Regional Airport (KSRR) in Ruidoso to pick up a patient for transport to Albuquerque, the NTSB said. The two pilots worked for Generation Jets; the two passengers were flight nurses with Trans Aero MedEvac.

Before takeoff, the crew’s briefing noted that the military had scheduled GPS jamming across the area and altitudes the flight would cross, the report said. About eight minutes after departure, the crew informed controllers at Albuquerque Center that they had lost GPS capability and needed a heading. Controllers asked the military to stop the jamming. Three other aircraft also reported losing GPS around the same time, the agency noted.

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